About Grassrootsy’s Creator

Welcome to Grassrootsy! My name is Joy Ike and I’m a full-time, independent artist based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I write this blog because I love music, marketing, and people. Coincidentally all three of those go really well together!

I started Grassrootsy 7 years ago after i left my publicist job. Through trial and error I was learning alot about branding, booking, touring, promoting, and more. I was going into the negative, dealing with my car breaking down on the road, learning how to run a sound system, trying to communicate with venues that didn’t care about music or musicians, and also having really great experiences that were just as important to talk about! So I realized I needed an outlet to share the stuff I was experiencing. Over the years, Grassrootsy has become a database of over 550 posts written by myself and guest contributors from across the world. The site exists to help independent artists learn how to launch, grow, and sustain their careers.

This blog is a labor of love in so many ways. I’ve considered calling it quits many times because there just aren’t enough hours in the day to write, keep up with the emails you send, and update old posts. But readers continue to send me emails about how much they use the site and love it. And I also run into readers on the road…which is one of the best feelings! So the show must go on!

I spend much of my time on the road on tour playing Universities, coffeehouses, theaters, and house concerts, and I love what I do! If I could pick a theme song for my life, for what I do, and for you the reader, it would be this one. I wrote it.

If you like this blog, please, please, consider helping us to keep it strong by using our Affiliates. Grassrootsy gets a % whenever you pay for services you already need – like web hosting or a mailing list provider. If you aren’t a musician (and even if you are), please share Grassrootsy with someone who could use it. Thanks!

Oh…and if you’d like to check out my music and other websites, you can find me here:

Born to Nigerian immigrants, independent artist Joy Ike’s music, voice, and writing has drawn comparisons to female musicians such as Corinne Bailey Rae, Regina Spektor, Norah Jones, and Fiona Apple. But her percussive piano-playing and soaring vocals give homage to her African upbringing. Leaving her career as a publicist in 2008, Ike has since played hundreds of shows across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest. She has had the opportunity to share the stage and open for Jeffrey Gaines, Cody Chestnutt, Deas Vail, Butterfly Boucher, Dwele, Chrisette Michele, Tyrone Wells, Najee, Allen Toussaint, and Serena Ryder to name a few. As a singer/songwriter who purposefully refuses to be pigeon-holed into any one specific genre, Ike’s path has consistently taken an “anywhere for anyone” approach playing for intimate audiences in coffeehouse, Universities, house concerts, churches, and small theater settings. A write-up on NPR’s All Things Considered says “The depth of subjects she tackles in her poetic lyrics are perfectly complemented by a unique blend of neo-soul, with just the right dash of pop…a truly compelling act to watch in person, with the ability to create an intimate setting in locations big and small.” A segment on NPR’s World Cafe (December 2013) featured Ike as one of Pennsylvania’s up-and-coming artists.